I Thought I Forgot About You
by carolinacasketteer
Summary: What happens when someone Kate thought she forgot about reappears. She's been abandoned enough for 50 lifetimes. Will she risk her heart and let this person back into her life? How will Castle help her?
1. Chapter 1

**I daydreamed this idea up a little while ago and thought it was a pretty decent story.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Castle, we would've never had to suffer through Alexis comparing her relationship with Pi to Caskett's ultimate love story of beating the odds.**

Chapter 1

"I don't know Castle, I think I'm leaning more towards the coffee on this one." Beckett said as she disembarked the elevator. "What? Beckett, come on the red velvet was to die for." Castle whined. "I will admit it was good, but don't you think coffee cake is kinda poetic? I mean it just says . . . _us_." Beckett countered. "Okay, I hear what you're saying and I guess you're right. How about this, we can have the cake be two different flavors and then everyone will be happy." Castle compromised. "Eh, I don't know Castle. Don't you think that's a bit excessive? One cake flavor is enough." Beckett remarked. "Yeah, but we're getting _married_ Kate, we are allowed to be a bit excessive." Castle said trying to convince Beckett. "Let's just keep thinking about it. We don't have to decide right now." Beckett resolved. "Fine." Castle grumbled.

"Yo Beckett!" Esposito exclaimed. "What's up?" Beckett asked. "There's a lady at your desk. She came in about twenty minutes ago asking for you. I told her you were at lunch but she could wait for you. She wouldn't even tell me her name." Esposito explained. "Okay, I'll go talk to her." Beckett replied rounding the corner of the bullpen.

As Beckett caught sight of the woman patiently waiting in Castle's chair, she felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. Kate honestly thought she'd never see this woman again. Yet, here she was at her place of work, waiting for her.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Beckett demanded in a harsh whisper. "I heard you got engaged and I just had to see what man managed to convince Katherine Beckett to marry him." The woman replied seemingly unphased by Beckett's hostility. "Wha- are you actually being serious right now? You have got to be kidding me!" Kate was getting more and more livid by the second. "Katie-" The woman interjected. "It's_ Kate_." Beckett crisply interrupted. A few seconds of tension filled silence ensued and all the while Castle was gaping at the public display looking like an idiot ready to catch flies. He had no idea who this woman was and how she could garner such a furious reaction from his fiancee.

"Come here." Kate exclaimed grasping the woman's wrist and yanking her into an unoccupied interrogation room. Castle and the boys followed and readied themselves behind the glass in the observation room wondering if they would have to intervene between the women at some point. "Kate just listen for a second. Okay?" The woman asked. "Listen for a second?" Beckett asked in disbelief. "I haven't seen you in _fifteen years _Charlie. And quite frankly, you don't even deserve my acknowledgment." Beckett finished her volume level rising. "I know!" Charlie yelled. "I know. We haven't seen each other in fifteen years and I don't deserve your time of day, but will you please just let me tell you how truly, and incredibly sorry I am. I have regretted what I did for years and I wanted so bad, _so bad_, to come home, and make it right, but I just didn't know how to do that." Charlie sincerely breathed out. "The truth is I just didn't know how to handle what happened. How to cope." Charlie whispered. "And you think I did?" Beckett replied in a calm tone. "Charlie . . . I didn't just lose my mom that night. I lost my whole family. My mom died, my dad checked out, and you left. You left when I needed my big sister the most." Beckett revealed.

Collective gasps of surprise sounded in the observation room as all three men realized the mystery woman standing before them was Kate Beckett's sister. Someone they never even knew existed.


	2. Chapter 2

**I should be doing homework right now, but Castle exists.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Castle, we would've seen the motorcycle by now.**

Chapter 2

Late November:

"Kate, I'm sorry I just. . ." Charlie drew in a shaky breath before continuing. "I was twenty-one. I didn't know how to be there for you and dad." "I was nineteen!" Beckett yelled. "Look I can't do this right now. You should go Charlie. And don't bother coming back. You acted like I didn't exist, I'm just returning the favor." Kate said somberly. "Fine. I'll go. You could use some time to process this, but don't think I'm just gonna walk away again. Not this time Kate." Charlie spoke softly.

Charlie left the interrogation room and departed from the twelfth precinct, and Kate tried to wrap her head around what had just happened. Castle left the interrogation room to comfort Beckett, and the boys got back to paperwork.

"Kate." Castle cautiously whispered. "I- Castle I . . ." Kate tried for words but couldn't find any. "Let's go home. Captain Gates isn't here and we don't have a case. You don't need to be here right now Kate." Castle supplied and Kate nodded her head in agreement before numbly walking to her desk to collect her things.

When Castle and Beckett got home Castle drew a bath for Kate and ordered Chinese. Kate picked at her food having lost her appetite after the reemergence of her sister.

"Her name's Charlotte Beckett. Charlie for short. She was twenty-one when my- _our _mom died, that makes her thirty-six now." Kate finally broke the silence. "You've never mentioned her before." Castle gently brought up. "Yeah well she didn't want anything to do with me so I gave up on her I guess." "Kate . . . I don't want to overstep or reopen old wounds, but . . . what happened?" Castle asked. "She was in med school at Harvard when it happened. She came home for the funeral and Dad had already started his descent into the bottle before she left. When she told me she was going back to Boston I asked her how she could just go back to how things were. She told me 'Katie, just because Mom's dead doesn't mean we can just stop living our lives.' I didn't understand how she could be so emotionless about it." Kate took a deep breath before continuing with the story.

"I called for . . . _months_ after she left. I told her about Dad, that I was moving back home. I _begged_ her to come home Castle. Eventually, she just stopped answering, so I stopped calling. After I managed to get my dad sober, he reached out to her. He told her he was doing better, that he missed her, and it was just radio silence from her. I often found myself wondering if she might be dead too." Kate revealed as a tear broke through her strong facade. "Oh Kate." Castle said, his heart breaking for her. He gathered her in his arms and she silently let the sobs wrack her body for a few minutes before regaining her composure.

"Castle I'm sorry I never told you about her. It was just too painful to bring it up." Kate apologized. "No, Kate . . . you have nothing to be sorry for. Okay? I understand. I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine if I had a sibling who acted like I didn't exist." Castle tried to reassure and sooth Kate.

"About ten years ago, I got curious. So, I looked her up. She's a big shot neurosurgeon at John's Hopkins. I guess she moved sometime after getting her medical degree." Kate said "Well, I guess you're pretty similar huh?" Castle wondered aloud getting a strange look from Kate. "Come on, She's a big shot neurosurgeon, you're a big shot homicide detective." Castle tried to explain. "I don't know Castle those aren't very equal careers." Beckett said curious as to Castle's logic. "No, you're right." Castle acquiesced. With a quirk of Kate's eyebrow he continued talking. "You are much more impressive, remarkable, and extraordinary than her." Castle spoke his tone filled with love for his fiancee. Kate shyly smiled at Castle and asked, "Anyone every tell you that you have a way with words?" "A few people." Castle replied. Silence took over the room for a few more minutes as both writer and muse tried to process the day's events.

"Thanks." Kate commented. "For what?" Castle questioned. "You know what." Kate teased. "For being you, being selfless and amazing, and . . . loving me." Kate explained. "Always, Kate." Castle whispered.

**I usually hate when fanfic writers incorporate **_**always**_** into their stories because I feel like they use the significance of the word in the wrong way. However, as you can see I used it at the end here. Hopefully the seriousness and sincerity in the conversation between Beckett and Castle at the end here works with the incorporation of **_**always**_**. I don't know, whatever.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm crossing my fingers hoping it will snow so I don't have to go to school tomorrow.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Castle, turtlenecks would not be a part of Beckett's wardrobe.**

Chapter 3

Late November:

It was the day after Charlie Beckett had shown up in New York, and Kate was taking a shower. Castle felt conflicted as to how to help Beckett when she was silently hurting after seeing her sister, who had abandoned her, again. He finally came up with an idea. He was going to call Charlie, set up a meeting, and try to help the sisters repair their relationship.

After Kate had kicked Charlie out of the precinct, she seemed pretty adamant that she wasn't going to let her absent sister back into her life. However, Castle knew that if she didn't give Charlie a chance at redemption, Kate would eventually live to regret it. So, Castle had a man to see about a favor.

It was a slow day at the precinct and the team was mindlessly filling out paperwork. When Ryan got up to refill his coffee cup, Castle followed him. "Hey Ryan." Castle excitedly exclaimed causing the Irish detective to jump slightly. "Jeez, Castle." Ryan admonished. "Calm down." "Sorry, I just . . . um I need a favor." Castle apprehensively voiced. "I'm listening." Ryan said. "Okay, but you have to promise not to tell Beckett okay?" Castle asked. Ryan eyed him suspiciously. Although Castle was one of his best friends, Beckett was like another one of his sisters, and he didn't know if he felt comfortable keeping something from her.

"Why's that?" Ryan questioned. "It's nothing bad. Well I don't think it is at least." Castle responded scratching his head. "I just need you to look up a phone number for someone for me." Castle revealed. "Seriously Castle? You can do that yourself." Ryan said. "Please Ryan, it's important and I need it as soon as possible." Castle was willing to beg if he had to. "Fine, what's the person's name?" Ryan finally relented. "Thank you. The name is Charlotte Beckett." Castle told the detective. "Wait Beck- the woman who was here yesterday?" Ryan suddenly seemed nervous. "Yeah and before you go running off to Beckett please just know that I'm trying to help here. I promise you will be left out of it." Castle continued to convince Ryan. "Ah . . . okay Castle, I just hope you know what you're doing." Ryan concluded. "Me too." Castle anxiously agreed.

After Ryan gave Castle Charlie Beckett's number, he holed himself up in the breakroom for some privacy while he made the call. Charlie picked up on the third ring and not recognizing the number asked who it was. "Richard Castle, Kate's fiancee." Castle answered. "Oh . . . why- I'm surprised you're calling me." She was not expecting her sister's fiancee to contact her. "Yeah well I am too. Listen I'm gonna be honest with you, I'm not really a fan of you right now, and I didn't even know about you until yesterday. That said, I love your sister and I want her to be happy. And I think that if she doesn't give you another chance and let's you walk out of her life she'll regret it." Castle explains. "Thus she won't be happy." Charlie infers. "Correct." Castle agrees.

"I want to talk to you face to face. Maybe we can come up with a way to show Kate you're willing to work to earn your place back in her life. Assuming you really are sorry for what you did and _want_ to make amends." Castle told Charlie his reason for calling. "Yes. I do want to make things right. I'm actually near New York Presbyterian, I just left there from a job interview." Charlie tells the writer. "I'll meet you at the coffee shop two blocks from there in twenty minutes." Castle plans. "Okay, I'll be there." Charlie says ending the call.

Charlie was already waiting with a hot cup of coffee when Castle walked through the door. Like her sister, she enjoyed her steady caffeine fix throughout the day.

"Hi." Charlie starts. "We didn't exactly get to properly introduce ourselves yesterday. I'm Charlie Beckett, Katie's older sister." Charlie outstretches her hand for Castle to shake. "Rick Castle." Castle says in a serious tone wanting to get down to business. This is the first time Castle really looked at the elder Beckett sister. Upon closer examination she and Kate actually resembled each other quite a bit. Charlie's hair was a darker brown, and she was shorter than Kate with a rounder face, but she had the same gorgeous hazel eyes and was quite beautiful like her little sister.

"As I said on the phone, I'm not fond of you for what you've done to Kate, but I think you two have some things you need to work out." Castle begins the conversation. "I really want her to just hear me out. I have missed fifteen years of her life. I don't want to miss anymore. And hopefully I'll get that job at the hospital down the street I just interviewed for. I think it's time for me to come home." Charlie revealed to Castle. "How about you come to dinner tonight at Kate and mine's place? I'll cook some chicken and pasta, we can ease Kate into it. If at any point you being there gets to be too much, I'll ask you to leave and we can try again some other time." Castle suggests. "That sounds good. I can be there at seven?" Charlie asks and Castle nods while writing down his address. "I'll see you at seven Charlie." Castle stands to leave. "Bye Rick." Charlie waves as Castle walks out the door hoping his fiancee won't castrate him when her sister shows up at their door later that night.


	4. Chapter 4

**This will probably be tonight's last chapter because I'm getting tired and have yet to do my homework. I have a rough idea of what path I want the story to follow, but I can't be sure as to how quickly I'll be able to get it done.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Castle, Castle would still have some scruff.**

Chapter 4

Late November:

"Wow Castle. Are you trying to cheer me up or somethin'?" Beckett teased lightheartedly as she wandered into the kitchen after taking a shower to decompress and wash the grime of the day off. "I don't know. I just felt like cooking tonight." Castle distractedly responded. "Mm, well I might just have to reward you for that feeling later." Kate seductively whispered in his ear as she snaked her arms around his middle. Castle grunted momentarily losing focus on getting the pasta sauce just right as his temptress of a fiancee used her bedroom voice on him. "Is Martha gonna be gone tonight?" Kate asked. "Because I wouldn't mind some of that red wine I love and you know I can get a little _loud_ after drinking that." Kate informed the man currently having difficulty restraining himself from jumping her right there in the middle of the kitchen.

"Honey, please save it for later, I really don't want to ruin dinner. And if you must know, yes my mother will be gone tonight. However, sadly enough we drank up all of that red wine you, and I, both like so much." Castle lied to his fiancee about their current stock of wine because he knew if she started drinking that and they had company over, it would end in embarrassment and a need for mind bleach.

"Castle are you okay?" Kate questioned. She found it odd that Castle was resisting her so much. She wouldn't mind skipping dinner altogether and going straight to dessert and there wasn't anyone else in the loft. Why was he acting so weird? She wondered. "What? Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Totally cool. Why don't you take a seat this is almost ready." Castle nervously tried to act normal and took the chicken out of the oven.

A few minutes later the doorbell rang and Beckett wondered who it could be. She looked at the table and saw that there was a third place set that she had failed to notice. "Did you invite someone over?" She asked Castle as he made his way over to the door. "Uh . . . yeah." Castle replied. Beckett got up from her seat as Castle opened the door and when she saw who was on the other side she became furious.

"Hi Rick." Charlie greeted. "Hey Ch-" Castle was interrupted by Kate's exasperated outburst. "What the hell Castle?! You invited her here? When did you even get in touch with her? I cannot believe you right now." Beckett stormed off to their bedroom and Castle apologized to Charlie before taking off after Kate.

"Look, I know you're mad at me but-" "Mad?" Kate was shocked at the fact that Castle could do this to her. "Castle I am _so_ far beyond _mad_ right now. I can't even- ugh!" "Kate?" Castle gently prodded. "I invited her here because I knew you wouldn't." "Wha-." Castle held up his hand to halt Kate's question. "Let me finish. You are stubborn Kate and you shouldn't be expected to let Charlie back in, but I know you. And if you just let her walk out of your life without another thought, you _are_ going to regret it and you would never forgive yourself. And as a result of that, _I_ would never forgive _myself_. So, I invited her for dinner. I think we should go out there and you can pretend she's not even there you don't have to talk to her, but I know you're hungry right now and if I may say so myself, there is some mouth-wateringly delicious food on the table ready for consumption." Castle took a deep breath after finishing his long speech. He didn't know what to think of the stoic look on Kate's face. Her silence was beginning to unnerve him.

"Fine, but don't expect me to play nice." Kate relented. "Phew . . . okay." Castle hoped he wouldn't have to break up a cat fight at any point in the night. Ooh . . . probably shouldn't say cat fight in front of Beckett. Castle thought. Beckett abruptly turned on her heel and leveled Castle with a glare. "And you are _so_ not getting lucky tonight." "Yeah . . . I kinda figured that." Castle defeatedly sighed.

When Beckett and Castle came out of the bedroom and took their seats at the table Charlie looked up and smiled. "This all looks and smells delicious Rick." "Thank you, I rather enjoy cooking and it's nice to be able to cook for more than just two." "Well, maybe we will find ourselves doing this again sometime." Charlie wondered "Yeah mayb-." "I'm sorry are we really doing this right now?!" Kate couldn't take it anymore she felt like she was in a parallel universe. "You two are acting like we have dinner like this weekly. I haven't had a meal with you in fifteen years Charlie. Cut the damn chit chat and tell me why you're here." Kate was done beating around the bush she was ready to talk even if it meant revisiting a painful past.

"I'm here because I regret what I did in the past and I want to fix things between us." Charlie began a night of revealing truths. "Well if you regret it so much, then why did you leave?" Kate asked. "Because I was a coward and I was scared." A silence fell on the group and no one was willing to break it. Finally, Charlie said, "Katie- Kate, I am so sorry. And I know that word is eventually going to lose its meaning because I don't know how else to express the regret I feel. I just want you to know that-" "Why didn't you come home when I got shot?" Kate whispered. Castle choked on a sip of wine. Kate acted as though she wasn't going to talk to her sister, and not only is she talking to her, she dove into the conversation head first.

"Uh . . ." Charlie was speechless after Kate dropped the bomb that was the topic of her shooting. "Did you even _know_ I got shot?" Kate questioned. "Yes, I knew." Charlie drew in a shaky breath and continued talking. "You remember that dog we had when we were little? Her name was Daisy. Dad and Mom got her a little while before I was born." Beckett had a shocked look on her face after hearing the mention of Daisy. "Seriously? I just asked you why you didn't show your face after I got shot and you bring up a goddamn _dog_?!" Kate scoffed and shook her head.

"Just- it will all make sense in the end." Charlie tried to convince. "When I was twelve, Daisy died. She was old and Dad had told me it would just happen one day. I thought I was ready for it. That I'd be able to handle it, but when it happened I felt like I couldn't breath. I loved that dog so much. She was my best friend, she followed me around everywhere and I was devastated when she passed away." "I'm sorry are you telling me that you were more broken up over your dog's death than our _mother's_?" "What? No! I'm trying to explain my reaction to Mom's death." Charlie clarified.

"After Daisy died, I ran away from home. I don't know if you remember-." "I do." Kate interrupted. "Okay. Anyways, I was gone for about five hours. Mom and Dad checked parks we went to and my friends' houses. They were scared out of their minds and eventually found me hiding under the slide in Lisa Henderson's backyard bawling my eyes out. Eventually I got over it and accepted that Daisy was gone, but that was the first traumatic experience I'd ever gone through at the time."

Castle was leaning back in his chair captivated by Charlie's words and rubbing slow, soothing circles on Kate's hand under the table.

"Ever since then, whenever someone close to me has died, I've run away. It's what I do and I feel like I have no control over it, like it's just engrained in my DNA." "It must run in the family." Castle pipes up and receives an elbow to the ribs for his remark. "Sorry, please continue." Castle apologized.

"I know you think Mom's death didn't affect me, but that's not true. I wasn't as close to Mom and Dad as you were. You and Mom would watch Temptation Lane marathons and you and Dad went to baseball games all the time. I wanted to be a doctor, so I checked out of family life and kept my head in textbooks. I did everything in my power to become the best doctor I could be, and I did that, but I did that at the cost of my family. That doesn't mean that I didn't love Mom any less than you did though." Charlie had never spoken these thoughts aloud and she felt relieved to get them off of her chest.

"You still haven't answered my question." Kate brought up. "I know, still getting to that." Charlie said. "I was watching the news one morning. I knew you were a cop, a good one. I didn't really know how I felt about that, but I realized it scared the shit out of me when I saw your picture up on the t.v. screen with the heading 'Police Detective Shot at Captain's Funeral'." A tear slipped down Charlie's cheek and a part of Kate wanted to forget the fifteen years of hurt she had endured and scoop her big sister up into her arms, but she couldn't. Not yet.

"I had a cup of orange juice in my hand. I was cleaning up breakfast. When the news anchor said your name I remember dropping the glass and it shattered all around me. I felt like that glass. After it finally registered with me that it was you who had been shot and was fighting for your life, my little sister, I wanted so bad to be by your side and do anything I could. I wanted to take your place." "If you felt like that why didn't you come see me?" Kate asked. "Because . . . it'd been thirteen years since I'd seen you. And . . . I felt like I had no right to be there. Like you would kick me out if I showed my face." Charlie revealed.

"I can't say that I wouldn't have done that, but I thought about you . . . after I woke up. I wanted more than anything to be held by you, like you used to do after a jackass of a sixteen year old boy did something to upset me." Kate recalled the nights when she would curl up on the couch with a bowl of ice cream while she told her sister about the latest stupid thing some guy she was interested in did. Charlie would then indulge her little sister in some of her experiences at that age and Kate would find herself feeling much better afterward. "Ha . . . yeah I remember those nights." Charlie smiled at the memory.

"When it was reported that you were gonna be okay and you'd make a full recovery I felt a little relieved, but I still wish I would've come to see you. It was another on my long list of things I'm not proud of." Kate was surprised at how much she managed to get out of her sister tonight. She was starting to believe her sister really did want to fix their relationship.

"Have you seen Dad yet?" Kate asked, she hadn't received a call from her father, but that didn't mean Charlie hadn't talked to him. "Uh . . . no. I wanted to try to make amends with you first. I thought maybe you could come with me?" Charlie wondered. "You know he called you after he got sober." Kate said regaining an accusatory tone to her voice. "He didn't mention you much when he was drunk off his ass, but once he got his shit together he realized you were gone." "Kate." Castle cautioned trying to reign in his fiancee's anger. "I told him how you left. That you couldn't be bothered to shed a tear over Mom and went back to your life in Boston as if nothing had happened."

Charlie had thought she'd finally gotten somewhere with Kate, but Beckett's ferocity was back and she wanted more explanations. "He wasn't even mad at you for leaving, and that pissed me off so much. I felt betrayed by him because I'd stuck around while you _ditched_ us, and he didn't feel any animosity towards you." Kate's passionate mention of the past came to an end. "He never was one to hold a grudge unlike the women in the family. He's always so forgiving." Kate whispered. "Kate I'm sorry, you shouldn't have had to deal with that by yourself. I should have been there to help you with him. Maybe if I was there we both could've gotten through to him." Charlie apologized for what felt like the hundredth time that night.

"Well, I guess there's only one way to find out if he will forgive you." Kate said. "And what way would that be?" Charlie asked some levity regained in the conversation. "We go see him. Tomorrow, he should be at home. We can meet there at noon." Kate suggested. "I would really like that." Charlie sincerely spoke.

"Well I guess I should get going. I'm sorry for just showing up here without you knowing Kate. Please don't blame Rick he just wants what's best for you." Charlie made her way to the door and the engaged couple said goodbye.

"That actually went a lot better than I thought it would've. I've imagined this night so many times in my head, I can't believe it actually happened." Kate said turning in Castle's embrace to face him. "Being with her tonight made me realize how much I miss her." Kate truthfully spoke. "Well I think you are well on the way to getting reacquainted with her." Castle murmured. "Yeah . . ." Kate trailed off wistfully the tug of sleep taking over. The duo cleaned up the kitchen silently and went to bed. Castle thanking the universe that tonight went rather well, and Beckett wondering what was in store tomorrow.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: If I owned Castle, Castle would've said I love you during the proposal.**

Chapter 5

Late November:

It was noon and Kate had just pulled up to her dad's apartment building. She could see Charlie standing outside waiting for her.

"Hey Charlie." Kate said as she made her way to the front door of the building where her sister was standing. "Hey, are you ready to play referee?" Charlie attempted to joke, nervousness filling her voice. "Calm down Charlie, I'm sure he'll be surprised that you're here and that I'm even talking to you, but like I said last night, I don't think it will take long for him to forgive you." "Yeah, okay, you're right. Let's just get this over with." Charlie conceded.

Kate buzzed up to her dad's apartment and the sisters quickly made their way up to his door.

"Hey dad." Kate said with a smile on her face when her dad opened the door. "Katie, to what do I owe this-." Jim trailed off when he caught sight of his eldest daughter. "Charlie? Is it really you?" Jim asked in disbelief. "Hi dad." Charlie said shyly. "My God, look at you. You're so beautiful, just like your mother." Jim still couldn't believe the sight before his eyes. "Dad-." Charlie's voice broke as the relief and regret of seeing her father for the first time in fifteen years ran together.

Jim stepped forward and pulled Charlie into his arms. They both reveled in the feel of each others' arms wrapped around them. Charlie inhaled her father's cologne and let the feeling of a little girl being comforted by the number one man in her life take over.

"I'm so glad your home." Jim spoke quietly after breaking their embrace. "I'm so sorry dad. You have every right to hate me and-." Charlie began her apology before her dad cut her off. "No, Charlie. Sweetheart you don't have to apologize to me. I didn't give you any reason to stick around when your mother died and I don't blame you for not coming back once I got straightened out. I can't fault you for running away, because I ran away too." Jim let his firstborn know that he understood her reasons for running away and had forgiven her long before she had reappeared and apologized herself.

"I love you dad, so much, and I'm here to stay. I'm done running away and living with regrets." "I love you too Charlie-bear and you don't have to apologize anymore. I'm glad you and Katie seem to have worked everything out." Charlie smiled at Jim's use of her childhood nickname and preceded to tell him about her reunion with Kate. "We did, yeah. She gave me a hard time at first, not that I blame her, but I finally convinced her that I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get back her trust." Charlie turned her head and flashed a smile at Kate.

"Well you two come on in. I want to know what's been going on with you Charlie. We've got a lot of catching up to do." Jim moved aside and let his daughters into his apartment. The sisters walked through the door, took a seat on the couch, and Charlie began to update her family on the happenings in her life.

An hour later the Beckett sisters emerged from their father's apartment building both happy that their family was together again.

"Hey can you give me a ride?" Charlie asked as they made their way to Kate's car. "Sure. Do you wanna grab lunch?" Kate wondered. "I'm surprised you actually want to spend more time with me after being stuck in the same room with me for over an hour." Charlie remarked, sadness tinging the edges of her voice. "Charlie," Kate waited until her sister looked up at her, "I've forgiven you. You apologized and explained yourself and I lost you for fifteen years, I'm not gonna waste anymore time." Kate honestly told Charlie. "You aren't still mad?" Charlie whispered. "I am a still a little bit mad, but I'll get over it soon enough. So, please stop assuming I'm gonna blow up at you again, I'm pretty sure I've gotten it all out of my system, and I want the real Charlie back. Okay?" "Okay, let's go get lunch." Charlie laughed.

While they were waiting on their food at Remy's, Charlie phone chimed indicating she had a text message. Kate looked over at her sister and noticed her silently giggling at something on her phone. "Are you giggling?" Kate teased. "What? No." Charlie protested. "Uh-huh sure, who is that?" Kate questioned her sister. "No one." Charlie replied. "Oh, so no one made you laugh like a school girl." "What is this an interrogation." Charlie asked. "I was just wondering what had you giggling so much."

"Fine, if you must know, it's my girlfriend." Charlie finally relented. "Girlfriend?" Kate repeated somewhat disbelieving. "Come on Kate you knew I was bisexual." Charlie said back. "Well yeah, I was once too, but I . . . grew out of it? . . . I guess you could say. I didn't know you'd sworn off all men." Kate continued their conversation. "I didn't swear off men. I just had a series of encounters with douche bags and then I met Val and everything was just so easy, it just felt right." Charlie said with a reminiscent smile on her face. "I know what you mean." "Right of course, I'm talking to the love struck teenager over here." Charlie joked to her little sister. "Hey, we are not that bad." Kate retorted. "You sure about that?" Charlie continued to tease Kate good-naturedly.

"So . . .Val?" Kate wondered aloud silently asking Charlie to elaborate. "Yeah, uh . . . her full name is Valerie Ruiz, she's 34. We met three years ago after I broke my leg. I was doing PT and she was working with another patient while I was there." "Well, if that look on your face is anything to go by, I'd say you're in love big sis." Kate smiled at Charlie. "Well, she's gonna be moving down here with me, so maybe in a couple weeks you and Castle can meet her." "I'd like that." Kate said excited at the idea of meeting the person who made her sister seem so happy.


End file.
